(Closed) To Have a Seating Chart… Or Not To Have a Seating Chart……

I am having a small reception, our guest maximum depending on how many RSVPs we get back is 75 people. We’re having an afternoon wedding and reception will start at 2:00 pm. Appetizers and light lunch will be served. It will be casual dining where trays will be set out and everyone can kind of nibble on what they want, followed by wedding cake.

My big question is should we assign seats and tables? I have this horrible vision in my head of people just sort of shuffling around and some tabled naked, and others crammed with people because no one wants to sit next to someone they don’t know.

im not having one…. i just think its more trouble than its worth. plus my wedding will be very casual and i hate to tell people where they have to sit. that being said i really think it depends on your guest list. 🙂

I don’t care two figs about a seating chart. There’s only x number of seats, and my guests are adults. They can figure it out.

Trust me, the table doesn’t care who sits at it or who doesn’t. Who cares if some tables don’t have people sitting at them? If my guests want to put their elbows in the butter because they crammed 12 people into a 8 person table, that’s on them, not me.

I’m not having one.. To me seating charts are for huge, super formal weddings. I realize thats not exactly how it is but thats how I vision it. If you want yours to be laid back or casual where everyone can mingle & have a good time I wouldn’t worry about it.

I would have one. Though 75 may seem “small” or “casual”, it’s still a lot of people. I think it will make things go more smoothly because people will know where they need to go so they won’t have to ask strangers if the seats at their table are taken, they won’t be “squeezing” to make more room, and you can ensure everyone actually has a place to sit. I doubt the seating chart will take you that long, so it would be worth the hour to make sure your guests are comfortable and your reception is smooth.

i think its better not to have one so you dont have to have people sitting with people they dont want to or people they dont know. if my cousin doesnt want to sit next to his mom and wants to sit next to his aunt then cool…cuz ya know what we dont have a seating chart =)

I’m having one for my 100 person wedding. I don’t want people to end up sitting with nobody they know because there’s only one seat left at a table or anything like that. Also, I’m having pretty much an exact amount of chairs so that I don’t have to waste money on extra centerpieces or chair sashes.

I think you should at least do table assignments. It will save a lot of confusion and also eliminate the too many people at one table, not enough people at another table, and only one seat available at each table type of situations. We are only having 24 guests and two tables, and I have assigned who sits where. I would have only assigned tables, but we have one child coming and their favor is different than the adult favors.

Do all your guests know each other very well? If so, let the guests figure it out.

If not (which is more likely at a wedding), please make your guests have to do less work. As a guest who has been in that situation — PLEASE make table assignments! It’s HORRIBLE and awkward to realize you and your date are the last at your table and have to find alternate tables with strangers. Our rehearsal dinner was 80 people and we assigned tables (not seats). Just make it as easy as possible on your guests.

We are having a smallish wedding too – inviting around 100 people. That’s going to be really tight in our small venue, and we’ll only just have enough seats. So we’re doing a assigned tables, so that we don’t end up with tables with just a few empty chairs, and then wind up with some people who don’t get a seat because of that.

I’m having one for the purpose of making my guests feel comfortable. We have a lot of friends and family that may only know one or two people there. Also some friends that may not really know anyone there. We are strategically placing people so that they will be sitting with people they at least somewhat know and don’t get stuck with like my fiance’s drunk sister or something. I’ve been to a weddings before where I didn’t know anyone and I wish they had a seating chart and put me with some younger people so it wasn’t so awkward trying to find a table to sit at.

I did table assignments and I’m glad I did. I had several groups of friends/family and I wanted to make sure that people seated together had something in common, and I wanted to make sure that families or couples didn’t end up seperated. I really think things went much more smoothly because I had the table assignments! 🙂